Former Navy chief sentenced to 18 years on attempted espionage charges
A former Navy chief convicted of attempted espionage last month was sentenced to 18 years in a military prison Wednesday, officials confirmed.
Former Chief Fire Controlman (Aegis) Bryce Steven Pedicini was found guilty last month of attempted espionage, failure to obey a lawful order, and attempted violation of a lawful general order charge specifications, following a weeklong, judge-only general court-martial, the Navy said.
In addition to prison time, Pedicini, formerly assigned to the Japan-based destroyer Higgins, was also given a dishonorable discharge and reduction in rank to E-1, according to the Navy.
Dating back to November 2022, Pedicini shared national defense and classified information with a representative from a foreign government that he had reason to believe could be damaging to the U.S. and beneficial to the foreign nation, the Naval Criminal Investigative Service said in a statement at the time of Pedicini’s conviction.
He shared this information “under the guise” of writing research papers, NCIS said. The agency did not say which foreign government received these documents from Pedicini.
While the chief was initially charged with espionage, the trial judge opted to convict him of the lesser offense of attempted espionage, according to officials, who declined to provide further details, citing the classified aspects of the proceedings.
NCIS detained Pedicini on May 19, 2023, and he has been in pre-trial confinement since. His Navy-appointed defense attorney has not responded to requests for comment.
The Navy said it had no records of a sailor being charged for espionage under the Uniform Code of Military Justice in at least the past five years, although other sailors have been charged and convicted in the federal system for similar crimes.
